The Eagleville Eagles (0-1), smarting from a come from behind loss to the Huntland Hornets in Week 1, invaded the friendly confines of Frog Bottom to take on the Cornersville Bulldogs (1-0) in a non-region rivalry contest.

The Bulldogs lost 27-15 at Eagleville last year and were 1-4 overall versus the Eagles coming in to the contest, dating back to 2003.

The game, originally scheduled for Friday night, was moved to Saturday afternoon due to inclement weather and the Bulldogs, behind big plays from their bruising running back duo of Brady Calahan and Cason Warner, combined with a rock solid defense, handed the Eagles a 35-13 defeat to improve to 2-0 on the season.

Calahan rushed for168 yards and two touchdowns and Warner bulled his way for 87 yards and two TDs.

The Eagles won the opening coin toss and deferred to the second half on an afternoon with the temperature approaching 90 degrees as both teams toiled in the heat.

“We were uncertain how the players would handle the break in routine and how they would handle the humid conditions,” Cornersville coach Gerard Randolph said. “But the guys were excited about playing on Saturday and our trainer (Lindsay Vendever) did a great job of making sure we took the necessary precautions during the game.”

The opening kickoff went to Cornersville’s Rhett Woodard, who returned the ball to the Bulldogs’ 45-yard line where they began their first offensive series in Frog Bottom.

The offensive line began opening holes and the Bulldogs, using the run game, went on an eight-play drive and steadily moved the ball down field featuring Warner’s bruising running style.

Calahan rushed the ball to the Eagles’ 10-yard line, setting up a first-and-goal for the Bulldogs.

Alex Hillard ran for two yards and Warner burst up the middle on second down, carrying Eagles’ defenders on his back as he rumbled into the end zone for a touchdown.

Jackson Williams nailed the extra point as the Cornersville faithful were on their feet with the Bulldogs leading 7-0 at the 5:50 mark of the first quarter.

Randolph talked about Calahan and Warner saying, “Brady’s a senior and has taken on a leadership role, he works hard every day in practice. He told me after the Community game he wanted to have a good game this week.”

“Cason came up big too and he is a strong, hard nose runner that is hard to bring down. Brady and Cason will be the first to tell you they could not have success without the blocking of their offensive line,” Randolph added.

The lead was short-lived when Eagleville’s triple threat Marcus Collins, bobbled the kickoff and then picked it up, ran around the left side, found the corner and was gone 91 yards to pay dirt.

The extra point was good and in the space of 23 seconds the game was tied 7-7.

Both defenses stiffened at this point as the game moved into the second quarter and neither team was able to move the ball.

The Eagles caught a break on a fumble deep in Bulldog territory, but five plays later, Hillard stepped in front of a Collins’ throw on the left side for an interception and Cornersville was back in business.

A block in the back penalty at the 30-yard line pushed the ball back to the Bulldogs’ 20-yard line.

Cornersville quarterback Jackson Farler handed off to Calahan on first down and he got around the right corner and outran everybody for an 80-yard touchdown.

Williams’ kick was good once again and the Bulldogs went ahead 14-7 at the 6:06 mark of the second quarter.

The Bulldogs’ defense stopped the visitors again and on the ensuing Eagleville punt, Brady Calahan made a nice return to the Bulldogs’ 46-yard line.

On a third-and-10 play, Farler found Eli Welch wide open and the big tight end gathered in the ball and out raced the Eagles’ defense for a 52-yard touchdown.

Williams nailed the extra point and the ‘Dawgs’ padded their lead to 21-7.

The Eagles mounted a threat with a 10-play drive, but it stalled at the Bulldog 25-yard line when a second down pass by Collins was knocked down by Warner as the horn sounded for the end of the first half.

The Eagles began the third quarter with their short passing game and after 10 plays, they moved the ball to the Bulldogs’ 27-yard line.

Collins fumbled on a third down play, but recovered for an eight-yard loss, forcing the Eagles to punt the ball to Cornersville, pinning the Bulldogs on their own 4-yard line.

The Bulldogs could not move the ball and on fourth down, Williams attempted a punt near the goal line when a high snap forced him to run and Williams was tackled at the Cornersville 9-yard line.

Eagleville took over and ran the ball three straight times into the stout Bulldog defense and each time they were denied, but on fourth-and-goal Collins won the race to the pylon to score the touchdown.

The Eagles extra point was partially blocked, sailing under the crossbar and the Cornersville lead was trimmed to eight points at 21-13 with 2:18 left in the third quarter.

The ensuing kickoff was short and Calahan returned it to the Bulldogs’ 40-yard line.

Calahan found a hole on second down and outran the Eagleville defenders again for a 54-yard touchdown.

Williams’’ extra point kick was true and with 1:13 left in the third quarter, the Bulldogs pulled ahead 28-13.

The Bulldog defense bent but did not break in the fourth quarter, keeping the Eagles away from the goal line.

Randolph praised his linebacking trio of Rhett Woodard, Tracy Wood, and freshman Wesley Pigg saying, “We gave up one touchdown and one special team’s touchdown.”

“Rhett Woodard (a pre-season All-State selection) played well for the second week in a row, Tracy did double duty as linebacker and weak side defensive end, and Wesley plays like an upperclassman. We are fortunate to have these three players.”

The Bulldogs started their next possession with 3:51 left in the game and faced a second-and-12 from the Eagleville 45-yard line where Warner burst through the Eagles line and shook off tacklers while dragging the rest, eventually storming into the end zone to put the game out of reach after Williams booted his fifth straight PAT to give the Bulldogs a commanding 35-13 lead.

Eagleville kept throwing the football, but Blake Estes intercepted on the Bulldogs’ 34-yard line as the horn sounded to end the game.

Cornersville hosts the Moore County Raiders on Friday night to open the Region 5-A schedule.

Second-ranked (AP Poll) Cornersville has won four straight over the Raiders after suffering a five-game losing streak to Lynchburg.

The Cornersville faithful will be in the stands despite the continuing Covid-19 threat and they will be cheering on their beloved Bulldogs.

Eagleville 7 0 6 0-13

Cornersville 7 14 7 7-35

Scoring Plays

First Quarter

Cornersville-Cason Warner 8-yard run, Jackson Williams PAT, 5:50.

Eagleville- Marcus Collins 90-yard kickoff return, Dylan Pratt PAT, 5:27.

Second Quarter

Cornersville-Brady Calahan 80-yard run, Jackson Williams PAT, 6:26.

Cornersville-Eli Welch 54-yard pass from Jackson Farler, Jackson Williams PAT, 4:14.

Third Quarter

Eagleville-Marcus Collins 4-yard run, PAT blocked, 2:18.

Cornersville-Brady Calahan 54-yard run, Jackson Williams PAT, 1:13.

Cornersville-Cason Warner 45-yard run, Jackson Williams PAT, 3:51.

Total Offense: Eagleville 140, Cornersville 341.

Rushing: Eagleville 67, Cornersville 289.

Passing: Eagleville 73, Cornersville 52.

Penalties: Eagleville 1-15, Cornersville 4-35.

First Downs: Eagleville 11, Cornersville 10.

Turnovers: Eagleville 2, Cornersville 2.

Cornersville Offense

Rushing: Brady Calahan 12-168-2TD, Cason Warner 13-87-2TD, Alex Hilliard 4-25, Jackson Farler 2-6, Rhett Woodard 1-3.

Passing: Jackson Farler 2-3-52-TD-0 INT.

Receiving: Eli Welch 1-54-TD, Tanner Edwards 1-(-2).

Kicking

PAT: Jackson Williams 5-5.

Punting: Jackson Williams 2-18.

Returns

Kickoffs: Cason Warner 1-9, Rhett Woodard 1-0, Riley Qualls 1-0.

Punts: Brady Calahan 3-31, Mason Calahan 1-0.

Defense

Tackles: Rhett Woodard 5 (TFL), Wesley Pigg 4.5 (TFL), Cason Warner 3, Hunter Fitzgerald 3, Blake Jones 3, Trenton Posey 3 (TFL), Alex Hillard 2.5 (INT), Eli Welch 2.5, Riley Qualls 2 (TFL), Mason Calahan 2, David Metcalf 2, Tyler Brockman 2, Tracy Wood 1.5, Garrett Adler 1, Brock Powers 1, Ben Franklin 1, Kale Adcox 1, Blaine Woodard 1, Blake Estes (INT).